Laboratory Response Network

Assisting Sentinel Laboratories in Oregon

The Oregon State Public Health Laboratory (OSPHL) Laboratory Response Network (LRN) for Public Health Preparedness assists sentinel laboratories by providing training and support in specimen collection, storage and shipment, evidence-control measures and recognition of chemical and biological terrorism agents.

The Oregon LRN is a statewide network of clinical, food testing, veterinary diagnostic and environmental laboratories (referred to as sentinel labs) that can provide a coordinated and immediate response to biological and chemical threats. These facilities are likely to be the first to recognize illnesses or outbreaks resulting from a bioterrorism or chemical terrorism event.

The role of the microbiology sentinel lab is to refer suspected BT agents to OSPHL for identification.

The chemical role of the sentinel lab is to alert proper authorities and ensure that clinical specimens are appropriately collected, handled and processed for shipment to CDC or a LRN-C lab as directed by OSPHL.